Bring Me the Horizon has had a relatively slow climb to fame for a group of five guys that appear to be the epitome of young rock stars.

The BMTH crew, which includes frontman Oliver “Oli” Sykes, drummer Matt Nicholls, keyboardist Jordan Fish, guitarist Lee Malia and bassist Matt Kean, have the aloof style, cool tattoos and a cultlike online following which seem to be the necessary traits of a hard rock group to earn young fans’ stamps of approval — and yet it has taken 10 years of touring and four full-length albums for the Sheffield-based band to get where it is today.

If you were to ask Sykes, it’s right where they want to be.

Two weeks before embarking on their marathon tour, which includes a sold-out stop at Vancouver’s Vogue Theatre on March 25, the 27-year-old opened up about their new album, new sound and new fans.

Q: You are currently on a 45-date tour. Are there any stops you’re looking forward to playing more than others?

A: Canada is actually one of the best places to play. I think Canada is a bit more European than the U.S. and the shows are always incredible. We always seem to sell out there. I don’t think we’ve ever not had a busy show there.

Q: You have four Canadian dates on your North American tour including one in Montreal, two in Toronto and one in Vancouver. Does the band have any say in where you play or is that all up to your manager?

A: It’s kind of (up to the manager), to be honest. But we get input, like if we say, ‘We’re never going to play here again,’ or, ‘We really like playing here.’ But, it’s generally that they tell us where we are going and we pack up.

Q: The March 25 date in Vancouver is your first time back in a few years. Are you looking forward to returning?

A: I think the thing we are looking forward to in Vancouver is selling out an all-ages show. We’ve played Vancouver a few times and that’s always the problem we have with it — that the shows are all over 18.

Q: Do you find that your fan base is all-ages or are your fans mostly younger?

A: It used to be that you could see a Bring Me The Horizon crowd, you could tell it was our crowd because they had a certain look and a certain theme. You would have 14-year-old girls and then there would be 40-year-old dudes waiting for their kids at the back, but they liked the band too. But it has definitely changed a lot — we see all different ages now.

Q: Your latest album Sempiternal has made you many new fans — even among your previous critics. What makes this album different from your other releases?

A: A lot of stuff, really. Before we wrote it we were coming off tour for something like eight years — it was just non-stop. We had never disappeared. And that was a huge thing before we went to write Sempiternal. We said we need a break, we needed to disappear, even if everyone forgot about us for a bit.

I think that was a huge step ... having a year off. It made me want to go back to it ... and get back to the writing process. So, it was a combination of all of these things.

Q: What has been the feedback from fans on your new sound?

A: Universally, the feedback was really positive. People who were fans of the different CDs, even the first ones which were obviously a lot heavier, have really embraced it. Obviously this album has a lot more melodic and pop influence, but we haven’t used that to get on the radio or get bigger — not consciously.

We needed to use that to make the lyrics stick, that’s the purpose for why the music is the way it is. It’s not just screaming and a clean chorus. We needed the music to represent an emotion, or a feeling, or a lyric and I don’t think it feels like we sold out. I don’t think it feels like we cheated or weakened it just for the sake of doing it. I think it all feels like it’s there for a purpose and I feel that is why people have embraced it and why so many new people have gotten into it.

Q: The past two albums (Sempiternal and 2010s There Is a Hell, Believe Me I’ve Seen It. There Is a Heaven, Let’s Keep It a Secret) have gone a lot deeper lyrically. Where did that come from?

A: I think as a band, we have progressed. Looking back now at where we were and where I was during our first album (2006’s Count Your Blessings), we were kids just getting into this world and writing an album just wanting to play heavy music and hiding behind that heavy music.

At that point, I hadn’t really gone through very much in the world beyond just being a kid and being angry.

Then we went into the phase where our band took off or whatever, on a small scale with touring the world, and that is what (2008’s Suicide Season) was all about.

And then There Is a Hell is almost like the huge cushion to that type of lifestyle: Going from at first what was fun, and taking that to a very dark place. In the music you can hear that, it’s much darker and much more dramatic. In general, the lyrical content is heavy but it’s much more uplifting. I think it’s more emotional in different ways.

The new CD is probably the most honest because we tackle life and looking back from within. I felt like I could be honest and didn’t have to lie about anything because there was nothing to lie about anymore. I saw everything for the first time a bit clearer and I think a lot of people relate to what I’m saying because no matter what problems everyone has in life, it all comes down to the same kinds of feelings. Whether you cut, take drugs or have some sort of eating disorder — whatever you do to find some kind of release — the reason behind why people do what they do comes down to the same kind of roots, and I think that’s why people connect with (Sempiternal).

Q: For members of a metal band, you’ve experienced a level of personal fame that’s rather uncharacteristic in your genre. Do you feel famous?

A: No, not at all. (We are) not extraordinary people, We are just ordinary people. We are lucky enough to be in a band where if people like our band or people like heavy music, then they know us. But if you don’t, then we are nobodies.

We can still walk around, we can still go places, we can still do stuff — it’s not a problem. People won’t give a shit.

And that’s great because we are very reserved people. I still get shy when people come up to me. I love that people want to talk to me and stuff but I don’t know what to say and I always seem to be very awkward.

Q: After 10 years as a band, what makes you want to keep recording and stepping out on stage?

A: We have experienced every possible thing you could experience as a band — all the highs and lows. We’ve worked for it and I love that. We’ve got so much experience from it. We haven’t just got big and then played Wembley (Stadium) or some other big venue and now have nothing left to do. We still have so much more to achieve. There is still so much to do with our band, it’s not over yet.

Q: What inspires you?

A: I take inspiration from anything, really. I’m not really biased. I can see art, pop music, graffiti or even advertisements. I’m very picky about certain things — saying ‘that’s terrible’ or ‘that’s cool’ — but I’m not elitist or biased toward what it is that I don’t like. I don’t hate anything in a general way. I don’t know, that’s a good a question.

Q: Finally, what’s next for BMTH?

A: Just touring, to be honest. That’s kind of what we do — we write an album and then spend some time out on tour. Hopefully we will get to a lot of new countries. I think we’re going to Hawaii and a few other places we’re really excited to see that we haven’t been to before. And we’re hoping to put out some material — not an album — maybe a new single, but nothing is set in stone.

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